I don't see how you can get around the plain meaning of this passage.
Simple. Messiah is God. This verse was speaking to men who had no power to lay down their lives for the atonement of mankind.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)
Looks to me that I am already saved.